1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an integrated assembly and apparatus for the collection of multiple samples of blood specimens. The invention further relates to an apparatus for drawing blood samples, wherein a double-ended needle is sheathed before use and safely resheathed after use, thereby reducing the risk of accidental needle wounds and resultant infections to a minimum. In another aspect, the invention relates to a blood collection device and integrated double-ended needle, wherein at no time is it necessary to cap or cut-off an exposed needle after use.
2. Related Art
Apparatus typically used to perform phlebotomy are septum-capped evacuated tubes which are used with double-ended hollow needles or sharpened cannulae, one end of which is inserted into the patient and the other end pierces the septum, thereby withdrawing a volume of blood. Prior to disposal of the needle, the needle is either capped or broken-off to prevent reuse.
It is customary to use sterile, single use, disposable devices for taking blood samples from patients just as single use, disposable, sterile hypodermic needles are widely used for administering therapeutic agents. While these conventional single use, disposable devices fully protect the patient from the dangers of infectious diseases, such as AIDS and certain hepatitis viruses, they present a risk of infection to medical and hospital personnel due to accidental wounding with a contaminated needle or contact with other contaminated parts of the disposable apparatus. Normally, health care workers are especially susceptible to accidental and potentially infectious needle wounds due to the careless handling or breaking of the needle in disposing of the syringe after use. Accidental needle wounds generally result in the need for blood tests for such diseases as AIDS and hepatitis. The corresponding costs and inefficiency of testing health care workers who have received an inadvertent needle wound result in a considerable waste of resources, which may be particularly damaging to a health care facility, as well as an ever present danger to the worker personally.
Widely used commercial devices for blood collection include double-ended, multiple sample needles having protective caps over both needle ends for storage. The needle holder for such a needle is often separate from the needle and reusable. The risk of a needle wound to the user, especially when recapping the needle after drawing a sample, is unacceptably high. In addition, the destruction of the needle in a clipping device has been recommended, but this is also a hazardous practice because of aerosol production of contaminated blood samples, the continued risk of wounds from the resultant blunt needle shaft and the hazards uncapped needles present to waste disposal personnel. Furthermore, it is not always practical to carry a needle clipping device from patient to patient in a hospital or clinic environment.